Bollywood music has always swayed the masses. Krsna Solo, who has composed music for films like Tanu Weds Manu , Jolly LLB and India’s Daughter , knows that. Yet after a career that has had him going behind the console to compose, the mic to sing and the camera to shoot ads, Solo is now all set to do all three together again, but this time for himself.
Over the past month, Solo has written, composed, sung and shot the videos for songs that have released under his new label, Panoctave Music. These songs, soft-rock ballads, are just the beginning of his plan to release tunes that he has worked on for years. “I first had this thought a couple of years ago. I was waiting for Tanu Weds Manu Returns to release as it was a huge responsibility,” says Solo. “I wanted to start after that. Also, with credibility in the industry now, people want to work with me; it’s easier now.”
Fool’s errand
It is the same industry that provides Solo with his bread and butter: the one that churns out songs that rarely allow other kinds of music to gain a foothold. “I was a songwriter and composer since my school days. But I had a reality check when I came to Mumbai. Things had changed. No one wanted to release albums. In my childhood days there were a lot of labels: Magnasound, Sony. But by the time I got into music professionally, no one wanted to touch pop music. There were pop icons then. We hardly see icons like Lucky Ali and Daler Mehndi now.”
One wouldn’t be wrong to consider then that it would be a fool’s errand to go against the tide and invest in independent music. But Solo knows what he is getting into. “Due to technology and awareness, the possibilities are endless now. Besides, there’s the example of Honey Singh. Whatever Honey Singh is, it is because of the Internet. His pre-movie songs were so famous that he made a name for himself before the movie business came calling.”
The proliferation of the Internet and technical know-how is just the means to an end though. The composer admits that he wants to put out the music that he enjoys, something Bollywood music doesn’t always produce.
“Bollywood films are always on a brief. Jo khud ko karna hai, woh nahi hota hai . I enjoy doing it but there are other kinds of music that I’ve always been writing. I would keep it to myself if there was no revenue. Sometimes, I’d think maybe I could use it in a film, but I was creating more than the film requires. Now it’s different. Whatever I’m creating, I want to release it in 10-20 days. It’s a shorter journey and more satisfying.”
Calling his endeavour a start-up then wouldn’t be wrong. Using his film studies degree and experience of shooting over a hundred ads, Solo even shoots the videos for the songs himself. “I am well-versed with this medium,” he says. “So I realised I could use that skill for my own thing. It’s fun and I know how to work with a low-cost production but give it a commercial look due to my work on ad films.”
The twinkle in his eye when he talks about direction gives away that he has thought of film-making too. “Bollywood is so uncertain. I want to direct a movie some day but I don't want to do too many things at one time. A movie I can direct even when I’m 50, but the music is where my heart is.”
Aspiring mentor
A film unit may not be in Solo’s immediate future, but he does want to be the captain of the ship in other ways: he wishes to mentor others through his music too. Asees Kaur, who had a hit song, ‘ Bolna ’ from Kapoor & Sons , has sung for Solo in Yaara Ve , while also providing backing vocals in ‘ Tu Jo Paas Mere’ . The composer also sees to it that his models, VFX assisters and choreographers, among others, are meticulously credited.
“Whatever I am today, it is because people respected me for whatever talent I had. I understand what it is to support a new person,” says Solo. “If I notice someone, I keep that person in mind, and now that I have my own label, I don’t need to wait for anyone.”
He is moving swiftly too. While Solo has plans to release an album with the various singers he comes across, his pet project under the label is his solo RnB album. “It’s not a genre that has been explored very well. India mein koi artists RnB nahi gaate. Sab filmy music gaate hai. Just the same genres make me feel stagnated.”
Solo mentions that he wants to work with as many genres and languages as possible. “I’m doing a few classical songs with one artist. Another song I'm doing is dance-pop. I am also working on a few songs with a Grammy nominee.”
However, before landing on foreign shores, Solo has to figure out how to make the label work. “I still need to get onto the digital distribution network, which will happen only after I have 10 songs or so. Right now, people can just download for free. I don’t mind people doing that; I just want them to know that creation is happening. Plus I believe that if the work is good, people will find you. It takes time, but I'm not in a hurry,” he smiles.
“It's definitely easier now,” he continues. “Earlier there was no way I could listen to something unless I had a tape or radio. Now I release a song and in a split second, the subscribers get the song in their inboxes, without having to purchase it. You get the likes, dislikes, comments right then. It has never been better than this.”
Log on to youtube.com/PanoctaveIndia to check out Solo’s music.
The author is a freelance writer
